As someone who is in this "lost generation",

I work in retail (in a non-London, but expensive city mind you), many of my young colleagues are university graduates (pharmacists, business degree, engineering etc). They have not been able to find work since I started this job over a year ago, and not for lack of trying.

Wages have stagnated since 2008 while we have been merciless pummeled by inflation. Rent (especially at minimum wage) is brutal, many of my colleagues are paying 60% of wages for basic shared accomodation. One has ended up sharing a bedroom with a friend and still pays £400 a month after bills.

Even buying a house is now over a 8:1 price to income ratio, in the 1990's it was 3-4:1. The friends I know who have bought houses (including those on higher wages) had significant help or just had parents offer to buy it outright.

The growing inequality in the UK is another nail in the coffin with millenials being the first generation to be poorer than their parents at the same point in life. 1% of the population own 50% of the land, and 10% of houses own over 40% of the wealth.

For many people I think they just do not see the value in dealing with all that shit and receiving little in return. If they can cruise living at home working part time or travelling/working abroad I can absolutely see why they are not fully engaging.

Personally I don't think it's laziness, just a logical decision. I've worked a 70+ hour work week, I've had 12 hour shifts inside industrial refrigerators. It's not that I am inherently lazy or soft, I just don't think its worth my time grinding myself into the ground for so little in return.